


no big deal

by little_baby_kaiju



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Author has both Tourette’s and ADHD, Gen, I’ve also added a fifth Gottlieb child, Karla has cerebral palsy, Newton Geiszler Has ADHD, Tourette's Syndrome, fite me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-01
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-17 01:03:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14822277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/little_baby_kaiju/pseuds/little_baby_kaiju
Summary: Newt twitches. And it’s no big deal.





	no big deal

**Author's Note:**

> I have been diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome and ADHD as a co-morbidity! All of Newt’s tics in this fic are my own tics! Yes, even the falling down one! Unlike Newt, I also am among the 10% with coprolalia! Bear with me, this is my first fic here! Send me feedback!

Newt twitches. Of course he twitches. He’s an excitable man-child of a biologist working a top (underpaid) job where he gets to dissect all the Kaiju he wants, without having to do anything illegal to acquire Kaiju to dissect. He also happens to have ADHD and Tourette’s Syndrome.

So Newt twitches. And it’s no big deal.

 

When he starts working for the PPDC, he tries to hide it from everyone, including Marshal Pentecost, who has read his personnel file and knows everything anyway. He slips up one day and, when the Marshal asks for an update on his current research with the Kaiju, he gets so excited and flaps his hands so much that he knocks his own glasses off twice, and can’t stop his tongue from clicking loudly, punctuating his sentences. The Marshal doesn’t look at him strangely and doesn’t comment at all, which is a new but not unwelcome reaction for Newt, as people have always stared and made fun and said nasty things. He just nods and says, “Thank you, Dr Geiszler,” and leaves.

No big deal.

 

Tendo notices his face scrunching up again and again in the mess hall one day. He grabs both sides of the offending face and asks, “Why’re you so twitchy, bro?”

Newt gets flustered and stutters, “Ah, just does that sometimes, man, it’s no big deal,” and Tendo can tell there’s a bigger issue he doesn’t want to talk about and says, “Ok bro, no big deal,” and lets go of Newt’s cheeks to get back to shovelling slimy pasta into his mouth.

No big deal.

 

It’s no big deal when Max barks at him and he barks back, and it’s no big deal when he starts repeating every word Raleigh says on the way to lunch one day, and it’s no big deal when his legs decide to not work and he drops like a stone to the ground in front of Mako. She just picks him up and carries on. They all understand that he has an errant personality at the best of times, and they don’t question anything anymore because _holy shit_ who has time for asking about a _twitch_ when freaking _aliens_ are coming out of the _sea_ and eating _countries_ , like _what up_.

And it continues to be No Big Deal.

 

The one teensy little problem Newt has goes by the name of Hermann Gottlieb. Ever since their letter exchange all those years ago, Newt has been trying to impress Hermann. To come across as a Cool Dude™ who knows what he’s doing. Yeah sure he plays the Beastie Boys too loud in the lab, and wears odd socks, and is generally an unprofessional slob, but he has tried really hard to keep this one tiny thing from Hermann, for years and years and years. It takes so much out of him, suppressing the tics, that some days he doesn’t make it back to his room before crashing, and slumps against his desk, and no that’s not Hermann’s parka draped over him when he wakes up hang on maybe it is who put _that_ there-

And he does so _so_ _well_ until one day everything falls apart-

And-

**”** **M-Mary Poppins, gay icon!”**

Silence. Newt’s eyes widen and he opens and closes his mouth like a fish, and for once no sound comes out. Hermann stares at him.

” _What?”_

And because Tourette’s is an _asshole_ sometimes, Newt repeats the word, in a crude approximation of Hermann’s British accent, and then, to make matters worse, subsequently flings out an arm and whacks his fist into the metal of his work table.

“Fuck fuck fuck _fuck_!”

Hermann hurries over, still slightly stunned by the events that have just happened.

“Newton, are you alright?” The man in question cradles his injured hand and winces.

“Yeah man, just a bit bruised.” “And... Newton, what-“

“Stop right there.” Newt holds out his uninjured hand in front of the taller man, sighing. “I have something to tell you.”

Hermann’s eyes are wide and he shifts nervously. “Go ahead...”

Newt takes a deep breath. “I have... a neurological condition called Tourette’s Syndrome. It makes my body move uncontrollably and do and say things I don’t have any desire to do or say. And before you say anything, no it’s not the ‘swearing disease’. Only 10% of people with Tourette’s have coprolalia - the swearing thing - and mine isn’t even cool enough to include that.” This entices a snort from Hermann. “I wasn’t mocking you when I said that just then, it was the Tourette’s. And I don’t really believe Mary Poppins is a gay icon - though come to think of it she really could be seen that way. I have no control over it sometimes. I’ve been suppressing it in front of you for years, because-“ Newt cuts himself off.

“Because?”

“Because I didn’t want to lose you as a friend. I’ve not had many friends before. And I don’t want to lose the one I have now.”

Hermann considers this for a second before replying. “I was born the middle child of five. My younger sister has cerebral palsy, leaving her wheelchair-bound. You can very clearly see, just by looking at me, that I do not have a problem with disability. Do you really think I’d stop being your friend over a disability?” Newt didn’t answer for a second, but then nodded.

Hermann sighed. “I’m almost disappointed in you, Newton. To think I would be so careless and cruel. I know we jest, but it’s never meant maliciously, at least not on my part.”

Newt goes to say ‘not on my part either’ but his vocal chords seem to have shut down and he can only nod again. “All you have to do is communicate with me. Let me know what you need, and how to help.” Newt finds his voice again, and says hoarsely, “So...”

“So what?”

“It’s no big deal?”

“Not at all, Newton. No big deal.”

And it wasn’t.


End file.
